Yellow Roses
by exclamation
Summary: HunterDustin. Hunter insults Dustin and takes him out to dinner as an apology... and gives him yellow roses.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One

"I was just thinking..." began Dustin, but Hunter cut him off angrily.

"Well don't! You shouldn't try and do things you're no good at." The second's silence was long enough for Hunter to regret the words, but Dustin turned and walked out of Storm Chargers before he could even begin to form an apology. This was why he usually kept quiet; when he opened his mouth he ended up saying things he regretted.

There was dead silence from everyone else in the shop who'd heard.

Tori walked over to Hunter and slapped him.

The girl knew as many martial arts moves as he did, and yet there were some things she thought were best dealt with by a slap. Hunter accepted the stinging cheek without a response. He knew he deserved it.

Dustin had only been trying to be a friend. He'd been concerned. And Hunter had gone and insulted him by way of thanks.

Hunter didn't say anything, though it was a little late for things to be mended by his usual silence. He walked out of the shop after Dustin, wishing for the past five minutes back so he could do them over.

The stupid things came out of his mouth so easily. The apologies were harder.

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Dustin was crouched on the ground, staring at his bike but too angry and upset to try tuning it. He knew his friends thought of him as an airhead, but no one had actually called him stupid to his face before. He fought down the furious tears and hated himself for the fact that crying came far too easily for him.

He knew he wasn't exactly the smartest guy around. He'd never be up to Cam's standards, but acting a little spaced out didn't make him an idiot. Did it?

He wondered if all his friends thought of him as stupid. What if they only let him hang around with them out of pity? Maybe they all laughed at him behind his back. Poor, idiotic Dustin.

A shadow fell across him.

"Hey." Dustin recognised the voice and didn't look up. He pretended to be inspecting the tires.

"Look, Dustin, I..." began Hunter. He trailed off. Dustin still didn't look up. Hunter already thought him an idiot, no sense making him think he was a wimp as well. Dustin furiously blinked back the tears. There was no way in hell he'd let Hunter see he was so close to crying!

"I'm no good at this," Hunter said. "If it were Blake I'd insulted, we'd spar and he'd be mad enough to hurt me by accident and then everything would be fine."

Was this an apology? It didn't really mean anything though, did it? It didn't change the fact that Hunter called him stupid. That Hunter thought he was stupid.

"If you were a girl, I'd buy you flowers and take you to dinner. I don't know how to apologise to my friends."

"Look, Dustin," he went on, when Dustin refused to even look up from the bike, "I didn't mean it. I was angry and the words just came out. I don't think you're stupid."

Dustin wanted to believe him. He hoped Hunter hung around with him because he enjoyed his company, not because he was secretly laughing at him. He knew he couldn't match Hunter on the track but he desperately wished that the Thunder Ranger didn't look down on him in other ways too.

"Damn it, Dustin, say something. Let me know what to do to make things right."

Dustin smirked at the idea that occurred to him. "I believe you suggested dinner."

There was a short silence, then Hunter asked, "And the flowers?"

"I'll leave that up to you." Dustin finally turned round and looked up at Hunter with a slight grin, "Nowhere cheap, mind."

Hunter grinned back. "Deal. Seven o'clock tomorrow."

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Storm Chargers was closing up for the evening. Blake had drawn the short straw today and was sweeping the floor while Kelly closed up the cash register. Tori was still hanging around, despite the fact that she didn't actually work here.

"Mind if I borrow the changing room to get cleaned up?" Dustin asked. He took his bag through. Blake finished with the floor and started pulling down the blinds. The door opened, despite the closed sign, to allow Hunter in.

Blake blinked in surprise for a moment at the sight of his brother. Hunter had forsaken his usual apparel of t-shirts stained dirt colours by motor cross and was wearing smart trousers and a black shirt with crimson trim. In one hand was a bunch of yellow roses.

"You got a date?" Blake asked.

"Um, not exactly."

Dustin emerged from the changing rooms, his t-shirt also traded for a real shirt.

"You ready?" Hunter asked, offering the flowers.

"So you did get flowers," Dustin said with a grin, taking the roses and sniffing them.

"I may be late home," Hunter called over his shoulder at Blake as the two left the shop.

Blake stared after the long after they'd disappeared from sight, his mind not quite able to process what he'd just seen. Hunter and Dustin? And roses?

Tori came to stand beside him. "So, evil, alien, mind-altering spell?"

"Maybe."

"Think we should talk to Cam?"

"Definitely."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

"I think you're making a fuss about nothing," said Cam.

"But Hunter was wearing a shirt," said Blake. Cam stared at him with that unimpressed expression he was so good at.

"Are shirts illegal now?" he asked.

"Hunter doesn't wear shirts. The last time he wore an actual shirt with buttons, he had a date with a model and she was... wow!"

"He gave Dustin flowers," Tori said.

"Flowers?" Even Cam sounded as though this might be something. "What sort of flowers?"

"Roses. Yellow roses."

To Blake's surprise, Cam started to laugh.

"Traditionally," Cam explained, "yellow roses represent friendship."

"Can you perhaps think of something," said the calm voice of Sensei, "that might cause Hunter to wish to reaffirm his friendship with Dustin."

"Well..." said Tori, "Hunter... kinda... insulted Dustin yesterday."

"Then I am glad that they have so amicably resolved their differences in such a short length of time."

"Yeah, I guess," said Blake. He hadn't known about any argument. Dinner and flowers wasn't exactly normal, but it was a plausible apology gesture. Usually an apology from Hunter just involved letting Blake win a sparring match.

Blake headed home, moderately convinced that his brother wasn't under an alien spell.

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"This was worth it just to see the look on Blake's face," Hunter laughed.

Dustin was grinning like crazy too. "Did you see Tori? She was staring open-mouthed. I didn't know people actually did that."

The pair were sitting in a pleasant little restaurant that Hunter had gotten to know quite well over the process of several first dates with various girls. It was somewhat weird to be sitting here with a friend, but at least he knew the food was good and not too expensive. The waiter had even managed to find a vase for the roses.

The conversation continued for some time on the subject of their friends' reactions and they laughed over possible scenarios had Shane or Cam been there. After that, they talked on a range of subjects, spending most of the time laughing as they went through the entrées and the main course. It was substantially less awkward than many meals Hunter had eaten in this place. He couldn't remember the last time he'd laughed so much. Maybe he should insult Dustin more often if an evening like this was the result.

The waiter came over with the desert menu. Deserts seemed to be a chef specialty and it seemed every time Hunter came in that the selection had changed.

"What do you recommend?" Hunter asked. He'd learned to trust the opinions of the staff in this place.

"Well, the chocolate and lime cheesecake is excellent," answered the waiter, "but the strawberry sundae can be served in a two-person portion if you want something more romantic."

Dustin had, unfortunately, chosen that moment to take a sip of water. He ended up choking quite violently. Hunter was torn between concern for his friend and laughter at the assumption.

"We're not a couple," Hunter said.

"My sincerest apologies. I assumed, since you usually come here with a date that this young man was..." the waiter trailed off.

"It's the flowers," Dustin said, having finally managed to stop choking but still struggling to breathe due to severe laughter.

"Yellows roses signify friendship," said Hunter, "At least that's what the lady in the shop told me."

"I can only say how sorry I am," the waiter said again.

"Don't mention it," said Dustin, managing to get himself under control finally.

"I think we'll go with the cheesecake."

The waiter left. Some of the other diners were looking at them with curiosity and confusion, not having heard what was said before Dustin nearly choked. Most were returning to their own meals, certain that the drama was now over.

Hunter and Dustin looked at each other and started laughing again.

Yeah, this had been worth it.

A truly exquisite cheesecake later, and the two were walking home. Now the conversation had trailed off to a slightly awkward part. If this had been a date, Hunter would now be working out how to get a kiss in. He looked at Dustin and chuckled slightly at the thought.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"No what?" Dustin asked, "Have I got cheesecake on my chin or something?"

"No, I was just thinking about what it would be like if this was a date."

"One of us would be wearing a dress."

"Well it would have to be you. I don't have the figure for it."

They looked at each other for several seconds before both of them collapse into mirth. Dustin almost dropped the roses. When the effects of the humour had worn off, they stayed where they were for a while, standing on a path above the beach. They leaned over the railings and looked down over the beach and the surf. The sun was setting slowly, bathing the world in a golden light.

"I had fun tonight," said Hunter.

"Yeah, me too. That's for calling me stupid."

"I really am sorry, Dustin."

"Are you going to tell me why you were so cranky yesterday?"

Hunter looked down, seeing the sand beneath him smooth and clean, empty of the usual surfers and swimmers who inhabited it by day. He stood in his trademarked silence, working out what to say and what to hide. Usually everything would come under the second category, but he felt he still owed Dustin something, despite the flowers and the meal.

"Come on," said Dustin, "if you're going to apologise, you should at least tell me why you did it?"

"I've not been sleeping well lately. I've been having dreams about when Lothor controlled me. I see myself hurting Blake and you guys." The words were said quietly. Hunter hadn't even told Blake about the contents of his dreams, though Blake had heard him in the night and knew about the nightmares.

"I was in a really bad mood because of the nightmares," Hunter went on, "and I couldn't take it out on Lothor, so I was snapping at everyone else. Including you. I'm sorry."

Dustin caught Hunter completely off guard by hugging him.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

They walked on in silence. But not very far, because they came to the point where their routes home diverted.

"I had fun tonight," Dustin said, suddenly awkward.

"Yeah me too."

There was a short silence.

"So..."

"Um..."

"Want to go to the movies of something tomorrow?" Dustin asked.

"Anything good on."

"I don't know. Let's find out."

"Sure."

There was another short silence.

"So. I guess I'll see you tomorrow then."

"Yeah. Bye."

Dustin turned and head off down the road towards his house. He wasn't quite sure why saying goodbye had suddenly become weird. It was like both of them expected something to happen, but neither was quite sure what.

"What, no kiss for your boyfriend?" jeered a voice behind him.

Dustin turned and saw a guy he vaguely recognised from school. Martin, a guy who came near the bottom in every class except sports, where he excelled but still felt the need to trip up the members of the other team when the ref wasn't looking. Dustin wouldn't have thought Martin was even aware he existed, though apparently everyone was worth noticing if there could be insults to be thrown.

"He's not my boyfriend," Dustin said.

"What, so those aren't roses?"

Dustin looked at the flowers, "Congratulations, I'm sure that'll come in handy when you take up flower arranging."

"Hey, I'm not the fag here." He looked angry, but Dustin was a ninja student. Even if he'd never been top of the class, he wasn't worried about one bully. Martin stalked towards him and grabbed one of the roses out of the bunch.

"Hey!" Dustin protested, but Martin pretended not to notice.

"He loves me, he loves me not," Martin sneered, pulling petals off the flower.

The idiotic, pointless destruction set a rage burning somewhere inside Dustin. He wasn't quite sure why, since he knew it was just a silly flower that would day in a few days anyway, but he was furious at Martin. So it technically wasn't self-defence, but if Sensei complained, Dustin could always say he thought the guy was about to hit him. He dealt Martin a spinning kick to the legs, followed up with a blow to the stomach and then sent him sprawling with a strike to the back when he doubled over from the first hit.

Dustin picked up the remains of the flower. "For future reference: I'm not gay."

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Hunter let himself in to the little apartment he shared with his brother. Blake emerged from his room at the sound of the front door.

"So, how was your evening?" Blake asked, failing to sound nonchalant.

"Pretty good," Hunter answered.

"What? That's all the detail I'm getting?"

Hunter almost started laughing again. He'd had exactly this conversation with Blake several times before now. All of them had been following dates. There was something slightly surreal about the idea of dating Dustin that he was in the right mood to find incredibly funny. Plus, it brought back the mental image of Dustin in a dress.

"Come on, man, you're actually smiling. That's got to be more than 'pretty good'."

"We're going to the movies tomorrow."

Blake nodded appreciatively, "Two dates in two days. That's good going."

"It's not a date."

"Sure. You keep telling yourself that."

Hunter ignored both that statement and the tone with which Blake had said it. He was going to the movies with a friend. There was absolutely nothing abnormal about that. Blake was just trying to tease him, as usual.

Hunter went into his bedroom and lay down on his bed with a book. He didn't read for long though, as his thoughts kept filling with the amusing things Dustin had said over dinner and entertaining prospects for what they might do tomorrow.

The next morning, Blake was insufferable. He walked into the kitchen as Hunter was getting breakfast and just sat there grinning until Hunter could bear it no longer and demanded:

"What the hell are you grinning about?!"

"You," Blake answered, not losing the grin, "It's not often I see you happy."

"What are you talking about? I'm no different to normal."

"No? So why were you humming at your eggs?"

"I wasn't humming." He hesitated. "Was I?"

Blake nodded. He smiled in the most infuriating way possible and droned in a singsong voice, "Someone's in lu-urve."

"Don't be ridiculous. This is Dustin."

"So?"

"So? In case you haven't noticed, _he's a guy_!"

"That didn't stop you grinning like a lovesick schoolgirl when you got in last night."

"Schoolgirl!" Hunter pretended to be offended, but his mind instantly returned to the conversation of dresses with Dustin, which made him want to smile. Unable to think up a suitable retort, he settled for flicking a forkful of scrambled egg at Blake. 


	4. Chapter 4

Kids, don't try this at home. Or the cinema.

**Chapter Four**

Hunter stood in the lobby of the cinema and tried not to think about what Blake had said earlier. Unfortunately, Dustin's slightly late arrival gave him enough time to go over, several times, the idea of this as a date. Which was ridiculous.

Instead, he stared at the film listings and tried to decide which would be more tolerable. There was the sappy, romantic chick-flick. There was the one with the precocious kid. Or there was the war film which, from the trailers, would have too much emotional trauma and not enough stuff blowing up. If he was bringing a girl, he'd probably end up yawning through the romantic one and spending more time staring at her breasts than the screen.

Not going to happen with Dustin, for obvious reasons.

Dustin finally arrived, apologising for being late. His apologies might sound more sincere if he ever actually managed to turn up somewhere on time. Hunter grinned at Dustin's rambling explanation. Then he thought about what Blake had said about him smiling mean something had to be very good.

He went off to buy popcorn and gave Dustin the choice of films. They ended up in the film with the kid.

"OK, the rules are," said Dustin as they sat down, "every time someone in the film says a number, you throw a piece of popcorn at someone that many rows in front."

"Seems like a waste of popcorn to me," said Hunter.

"Come on, this stuff taste like cardboard with salt and butter on it," said Dustin, despite the fact he was shoving a large handful into his mouth. He did have a point.

"OK, but what if the number's really high? What if someone says a million?"

"You aim at the front row."

Hunter was quite liking this idea, as a parent herded in a troop of about a dozen brats, all yelling and squabbling. "How are we going to know if we hit them?"

"Just listen out for the annoyed yells." Dustin glanced sideways at him and grinned. Hunter grinned back.

Then he caught himself before he did anything that might be considered flirting.

The film was as bad as Hunter had anticipated, but thoroughly enjoyable. Particularly when they added the rule that any time anyone said the kid's name, they threw popcorn at the annoying group near the front. One of them turned round and started throwing stuff.

This was probably the closest Hunter had come to being thrown out of a film, but the theatre was really quiet and, when the usher came to ask them to leave, the elderly couple on the back row said the popcorn fight was more entertaining than the film.

Spurred on by the encouragement, the other kids joined in, much to the annoyance of the loan adult trying to control them. There was an all-out popcorn war going on by the time the final credits rolled up the screen.

It was amazing that their popcorn had lasted that long. If the film had been any longer, they would have needed to make a trip to the refreshment stand for more ammunition.

"I can't believe that usher let us get away with that," laughed Dustin as they emerged from the cinema.

"Did you see him? Perfect hair and immaculate clothes. He was terrified of having a popcorn bucket emptied over his head."

Dustin laughed again. It was nice to see. It made his whole face light up as though there was an extra bright pool of sunlight around him. And so help him, if Hunter started thinking poetry about Dustin...

He wasn't quite sure how to finish that thought. He also wasn't sure where the sunshine thought had come from.

Clearly, he'd been too long without a date if he was thinking this way about Dustin. But then, he did make him laugh. Not many people could do that, girls or otherwise. Hunter looked at Dustin and wondered if Blake was right. His brother always seemed to know him better than he knew himself. It seemed absurd, but then so did so much else about his life.

And he did enjoy spending time with Dustin.

They headed towards a coffee shop because they weren't ready to say goodbye just yet. Most friends, they'd say goodbye outside the cinema or go somewhere familiar to hang. They wouldn't go for coffee.

Maybe this was a date.

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"Oi! Fag!"

Dustin didn't realise the insult was directed at him until a hand grabbed him and spun him round. It was Martin, looking utterly furious and with a couple of cronies behind him.

"No damn fag is going to make me look a fool!" Martin snarled, "You got lucky yesterday. It's not going to happen this time."

"You're so sure you can beat me that you hand to bring reinforcements?" Dustin knew the jibe was only likely to make Martin more mad, but these guys almost certain weren't used to fighting anyone with martial arts training. Besides, if Martin wanted to prove his masculinity, Dustin might get to fight him on his own before the others joined in and that evened the odds somewhat.

This had been such a good day. The cinema had been way more fun that he'd expected and then they'd spent about three hours over a cup of coffee just chatting. And now he was going be attacked by some prejudiced idiots who couldn't tell the differences between friends and boyfriends.

Martin swung a punch, which Dustin blocked easily. He blocked the next one too. Then the goons decided to get involved. It was still easier than fighting monsters and Dustin managed to land several good blows while avoiding any aimed at him.

Then one of the goons got lucky and managed to grab Dustin's arms from behind.

"Dustin?" a voice called, "Need a hand?" Dustin risked a glance and saw Blake.

"I've got it," he called back.

Martin was coming in for a frontal attack. Dustin jumped, kicked Martin and used the force of that to pivot him over the head of the guy who still held his arms, probably causing some severe pain to his shoulders from the twist.

Dustin was free again, in fighting stance and without some much as a bruise on him.

One of the others was definitely rubbing his shoulder and Martin was clutching his chest tightly where Dustin had just used him as a footstool.

"Be careful who you chose to bully," Dustin advised. Blake walked up to stand beside Dustin.

Martin and his friends ran like hell.

"Never should have doubted you," Blake said.

"Those guys are much easier than kelzaks." 

"So, my brother still grinning like an idiot?"

"Yeah," Dustin had been somewhat surprised by Hunter's good mood, "Did something happen? He seemed really cheerful. He's not been hit by some mind-altering ray or something."

"Or something," Blake said with a smirk. "It's a little thing called love."

"Oh." Dustin wondered why Hunter was hanging around with him if there was someone he'd fallen for he should be spending time with. "Who's the lucky girl?"

Blake just laughed, "Doofus!" 


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

"So, what exactly is going on between you and Hunter?" asked Tori as she drove Dustin and Shane to Ninjops for their next training session.

"Nothing," Dustin, "We're friends. Friends hang out."

"Because, if something was going on, you wouldn't have to hide it."

"There's nothing going on!"

"You've both been acting kinda weird lately."

"You're worried 'cause Dustin's acting weird?" asked Shane with a grin.

"What I mean is," said Tori, "that you two have been spending an awful lot of time together lately."

"So? We're friends." Dustin really didn't like where this conversation was going. Or where it had been for the last five minutes. And he didn't think he stood a chance of getting Tori to change the subject. Unfortunately, the only way out of the conversation seemed to be to jump out of the van and walk the rest of the way and he didn't want to ruin the fact that it looked like they might turn up on time today.

"You two have been going to the cinema, going for meals, going for coffee," said Tori.

"Going to the theatre," added Shane.

"Really?" It seemed Tori hadn't heard about that one.

"It was just a comedy night. Short sketches, stand-ups, one guy with puppets."

"Still, theatre? That's not something you'd normally do. And you and Hunter have been going to these things with just the two of you."

"I've been loads of places with just you and that doesn't mean anything."

"Yeah, be we've never hung out, just the two of us in a load of date-like situations."

Dustin had been wondering when that word would show up. Date. Tori thought he and Hunter were dating. It had been bad enough that Blake had been making jokes about Hunter and him, now Tori seriously thought they might be a couple?

"We're not dating," Dustin said, "We're just friends." Tori didn't say anything. "Shane, back me up here."

"I don't know, you two have been pretty close lately."

Thankfully the van was pulling up outside Ninjops and soon they'd been training. It would be a couple of hours before Dustin would have to try and get the confusions of his social life straightened out, no pun intended. He climbed out of the van and slammed the door with rather more force than necessary.

"Me and Hunter are friends," he said, "that's all there is to it." He walked across the pond towards the waterfall, the other two following close behind.

"All I'm saying," Tori said, "is that you don't have to try and hide it if you and Hunter are together."

"I'm not hiding anything." The waterfall splashed around him without leaving a drop of water on his clothes as he passed through and into the tunnel on the other said. "I'm not gay!"

"Thanks for sharing," muttered Cam who was sitting at his computer, "I'm sure we all needed to know that."

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"I'm not gay!" Hunter heard Dustin exclaim. The words might not have been aimed at him, but the meaning struck straight at his heart. It meant there was no way in hell he would ever be interested in Hunter. It meant that the hours spent wondering how best to broach the subject of feelings had been wasted. It meant all those little smiles Dustin gave him were nothing more than signs of friendship.

He stayed calm and quiet, holding himself together. He managed to give Dustin a nod of greeting and hoped that it looked natural enough. He was good at hiding. He always had been.

This was why he never opened up to anyone. Quick dates, a few pleasant evenings and even nicer kisses and then he moved on. He didn't let himself feel because the good feelings were inevitably followed by the bad. Everyone he let too close ended up hurting him, whether they meant to or not. Dustin would rather jump off a bridge than hurt a friend, but those three little words might as well have shoved a knife in Hunter's gut.

The training was tough as usual. The group were sent on a long run through the forest, followed by sparring practice. For once, Hunter was glad to be partnered with Cam. It meant he had to pick himself up off the mat more often than usual, but at least he wouldn't have to deal with Dustin's hot, sweaty body so close to his own.

He was grateful for the exercise. The workout allowed him to switch off his mind for a while and fighting against Cam didn't allow even a moment to be distracted by Dustin. He poured himself completely into the training because he didn't dare stop for even a second and think about what Dustin's words meant for him. Cam must have noticed something.

"Have you been practicing more?" he asked as he offered Hunter a hand up off the mats again, "That was a harder than usual."

"Guess I'm just concentrating today," Hunter answered.

All too soon, the sparring ended and sensei dismissed them.

"Can. can I talk to you?" Dustin asked.

"Sure." Hunter tried to look normal as he followed Dustin out through the waterfall and they walked through the woods a little way. Despite his statement, Dustin didn't seem in a hurry to actually say anything.

"I. um." Dustin said, "I think we should stop hanging out so much, just the two of us. People are. um getting the wrong idea. I think we should just go back to how things were before."

No more popcorn fights in the cinema. No more cosy little chats over coffee. No more wandering down the beach talking about anything and everything that came into their heads. Back to the way it was before, when they'd talked on the track and always had the rest of the guys around. No more private little laughs. No more sideways smiles. No more wandering past shop windows and spotting things he thought might make Dustin smile.

"Sure," he answered, "If that's what you want."

"You don't mind?"

Didn't mind that his heart was being pulled beating from his chest? Didn't mind that his days would be missing those moments of sunshine when Dustin smiled? Didn't mind that the things he spent days looking forward to would no longer happen? Ever again.

"Why would I mind?"

Hunter turned and walked away through the woods, wishing desperately that a monster would attack him because he really, really needed something to punch. 


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

Hunter had brought out the punch bag and hung it from the ceiling in the middle of the living room. The brothers had decided when they moved in that they'd make room for training and practice. Hunter was immensely grateful for that decision now as he pummelled out his anger into the leather.

He was mad at himself for falling for someone impossible. He was mad at Blake for making him realise the truth so that he actually knew why things were impossible. And he was mad at Dustin for being normal, for once. The guy had some many odd little personality traits that Hunter could almost allow himself believe, when they were together, that something might happen.

But it wouldn't. Dustin was a normal guy, interested in someone with skirts and breasts. There was no chance he'd even think about looking at Hunter that way.

"It's weird," Blake's voice interrupted his mental rant, "that you will struggle against impossible odds in a battle, you will keep going even though it's obvious to everyone, including yourself, that you're just going to get beaten to a pulp or killed. You'd never even think about backing down."

Hunter stopped punching, holding the bag for support as he listened to his brother and took the time to get his breath back.

"But when something resembling emotions gets involved, you give up without a fight."

"He's straight," said Hunter, "that's all there is to it."

"He probably didn't know we were there. He just said that to get Tori to leave him alone."

"Which is why he said, to my face, that he didn't want to hang out so much anymore." Hunter went back to punching the bag, his rage at the universe in general was only being fuelled by Blake's words.

"You could have argued with him."

Hunter didn't respond. Blake lived in a dream world. He believed that the good guys would always win and that everyone would get a happy ending. He didn't bother looking out the window and seeing the huge number of lives that didn't have their happy ending and didn't look like they ever would.

Hunter knew he and Dustin would never be an item. The sensible thing was just to try and forget him and get back to dating girls. One of them was bound to remind him why he liked females and push the other ninja out of him thoughts. Dustin would never even need to know how Hunter felt.

It was safer this way. Quick kisses with girls he barely knew left him less open to pain than someone he really thought he could open up to. Stay distant and he'd stay away from heartache.

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Dustin was missing Hunter more than he'd expected to. Sure, they saw each other at the track or at Ninjops, but it wasn't the same. He missed the private jokes and entertaining conversations. He missed the way he could bring a smile to Hunter's usually sullen face.

He leaned on the railings on top of the cliff, looking down at the beach, thinking that the last time he'd stood here was to watch the sunset with Hunter. There was nothing stopping him going and finding Hunter, but that would just give everyone the wrong idea again. He knew the others thought him weird already, he didn't want to give them the idea he was gay.

He'd just give it a little time, then he could start hanging with Hunter again at the track and no one would think anything of it.

It was probably the best thing for everyone. After all, Hunter hadn't seemed that keen on carrying on spending so much time together. He'd probably only hung out with him so much because he was still feeling guilty about the insult. He just leapt at the chance to walk away. Maybe that was the reason he'd smiled so much, he'd been pretending to enjoy himself so as not to hurt Dustin's feelings. He hadn't really meant any of those little smiles and laughs, because Hunter just didn't smile. Ever.

Dustin thought he'd been stupid not to see it earlier.

"Hey." Someone came at leaned on the railings beside him. Dustin looked up, half hoping for a moment that it was Hunter. But it was only Blake.

"You OK?" Blake asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Well, brooding might be my brother's default state of being, but moping isn't yours. You two should talk things out rather than both being miserable."

"There's nothing to sort out." So Blake clearly hadn't given up the idea that they were an item either.

"Which is why you're standing here looking so sad and wondering if he's missing you as much as your missing him."

"Is mind-reading a Thunder power or something?" Dustin asked.

"It's written all over your face. You miss him, so go talk to him."

"No. It's better that things go back to normal."

"Is this 'cause of those idiots giving you a hard time?"

"What, Martin?" Dustin hadn't really thought about him much since it happened. He'd been too busy trying to convince people whose opinions actually mattered that he wasn't gay. "No. It's nothing to do with him."

"Then what's the problem?"

"There's no problem. We're still friends."

Blake gave a little laugh. "What sort of guy buys a friend flowers?"

"One who's apologising. Besides, yellow roses mean friendship."

"He bought you a bunch of flowers, Dustin, and took you out to dinner. Just think about it. You might not having been dating him, but he was dating you."

Blake walked away, leaving Dustin too confused to even manage to call him back for a better explanation. Was Blake right? Did Hunter really like him... that way? He couldn't believe Blake would joke about this now, when he could tell Dustin was feeling upset. And Blake did know his brother better than anyone. But, still, this was Hunter.

Hunter had never for a moment shown any interest in guys. Why would that change?

Dustin leaned on the railings and thought back over the past few weeks. He thought about the meals, and the cups of coffee and the trips to the movies. He thought about the nights on the couch with pizza and video games. He thought about all the smiles and glances Hunter had sent his way.

Yeah, he could see why the guys might think they were dating.

He could see why Hunter might think so too.

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Hunter was still working out when there was a knock on the door. Blake had left earlier so Hunter went to answer it. It was probably someone trying to sell them something, again.

But when the door opened, it revealed a guy in a delivery company's uniform, holding a bunch of crimson roses.

"Delivery for a Mr Hunter Bradley," said the man.  



	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

Hunter read the card that had come with the flowers. It stated a restaurant reservation card along with a strict instruction to 'dress smart.' As he found a vase for the roses, he wondered about who might have sent them. Was there some girl who was interested in him that he hadn't even noticed because of Dustin?

Well, whoever had sent them, this would be the perfect opportunity to try and put Dustin out of his mind.

He headed to the bathroom to shower and wash away the sweat of exercise. Then he stared at his closet and wondered what this person would consider smart. He wasn't sure if a clean t-shirt and his non-scruffy jeans would be enough, or if the restaurant was a black-tie affair. If it was the latter, he was in trouble since he didn't own a tie of any colour. In the end, he settled for wearing the shirt he'd worn on his first meal out with Dustin. If that wasn't smart enough for whoever this girl was, then clearly he  
wasn't the right guy for her.

As Hunter left the house, Blake called from the living room, telling him to have a nice evening. He must have arrived home when he was in the shower and seen the flowers. Hunter wondered if this was some scheme of his brother's. He wouldn't put it past him to set up a blind date as a way of stopping Hunter brooding at home. Well, he could wait to yell at Blake until afterwards, just in case he actually enjoyed himself.

He found the restaurant easily enough. Walking through the doors, he wished he'd borrowed a tie off Blake. His shoes squeaked slightly as he walked across a marble floor to the main desk. A door offered a glimpse through to a spacious dining room, lit by glittering chandeliers and surrounded by ornate pillars. The crockery was fine china and the glasses were crystal.

Hunter just hoped he wasn't expected to pay for this meal or he wouldn't be able to eat for a month.

"Do you have a reservation?" asked the man behind the desk. His expression was slightly scornful, peering down on Hunter as though he was some insect that needed to be squashed. Hunter handed over the reservation card and then glanced down, just checking he hadn't accidentally worn muddy trainers. The man stared at the card as if he were trying to detect a forgery, then he led him through into the dining room, to a small table that was out of the way, right next to the kitchen door.

There were two places set at the table, but no one else was there yet. Hunter sat down and waited. He checked his watch, but he wasn't that early.

A pretty, young waitress came from the kitchen and offered him the drinks menu while he waited.

She started to head back to the kitchen, but then she turned round and asked, "Are you a rock star or something?"

"What?" Hunter asked startled.

"Well, people usually have to wait weeks to get a table here, yet you phone up this afternoon and suddenly there's a space for you. I just wondered if I ought to be getting your autograph."

"I didn't actually book this table. The person I'm meeting did."

"Oh. Is he a rock star?"

"I don't know. I've no idea who asked me here."

"I guess we'll both find out soon." She turned back to the kitchen. A minute later, as a silent waiter emerged with plates of food, Hunter could make out voices in the kitchen. Someone was being reprimanded for 'engaging the customers in idle chitchat'. According to the stern voice, Hunter would rather sit here being bored while he waited for his mystery date than have a conversation with a friendly waitress.

So Hunter sat there are watched the rest of the serving staff gliding between the tables without any unnecessary words. He wondered who he knew who had the influence to get this booking. He didn't think he knew anyone either famous or rich enough to be able to do this.

Then a very familiar voice said behind him, "Sorry I'm late."

"Dustin?!"

Dustin grinned at him as he took his seat, "Well, we've established that flowers and dinner are the correct way to apologise for saying something stupid."

"My brother set you up to this, didn't he?" Hunter demanded, suddenly furious. He was trying to get over Dustin, and yet here he was, reminding him of everything he couldn't have. Was this some joke to him?

"No," Dustin protested, "Not really."

"Not really?" Hunter glared across the table. Dustin had said he didn't want to hang out so much, so what the hell was he playing at? Setting up this thing to look like a date and then turning up. The guy who wanted to go back to normal, they guy who didn't want to be more than friends, the guy who'd loudly declared that he wasn't gay.

"Blake just told me that if I missed you, I ought to talk to you. And I have been missing you. A lot." Hunter saw the seriousness of Dustin's expression and realised that maybe this wasn't a joke. His anger faded.

"I've missed you too," said Hunter.

"I've enjoyed the time we've spent together and I really don't want it to end."

"What do you want?" It was hard to actually ask the question. His mind was racing with hope and terror about what the answer might be. He had to tell himself that nothing Dustin said could make things any worse than they had been this morning.

"I don't know," Dustin answered, "I'm not gay. I've never been interested in guys. But I've really enjoyed everything we've done together. I don't quite know where to go from here."

"Me neither," acknowledged Hunter.

"Are you interested in me?"

He didn't answer immediately. He had a brief, internal argument weighing up the potential damage of honesty against the potential gain. Finally, he came to the conclusion that he'd never stop wondering what might have been if he lied now. "Yes," he said.

"Maybe," said Dustin nervously, "Maybe we should try. kissing."

There was a short silence, then they both leaned across the table. Their lips met. Hunter's eyes were closed as he enjoyed the sensations of warmth and touch.

The kiss was short and they separated quickly.

"Well, that definitely wasn't unpleasant," said Dustin, the nervousness replaced by a slight grin.

"It didn't really feel any different from kissing a girl."

"Just my luck," the cheerful waitress had returned, "all the cute guys I meet are gay." But she was smiling as she said it.

"I thought you weren't allowed to talk to the customers?" Hunter asked.

"Yeah, well I'm getting fired at the end of the week anyway so it doesn't make much difference. What can I get you?"

They placed their order and the waitress disappeared back into the kitchen.

"So that's yet another person who's already convinced we're gay," said Dustin.

"In her case, I think it's understandable."

"But are we?"

"I don't know." He looked at Dustin across the table and knew that he was good-looking. But being able to recognise that didn't mean he was actually attracted to the guy. On the other hand, he had no complaints about the kiss.

"How about we go back to hanging out constantly and we just see where it goes from there."

"OK." Dustin smiled in just the way Hunter had been missing and Hunter  
smiled back, glad to see that expression again.

The waitress arrived with their starters. "So," she asked Dustin, "are you a rock star?"

Dustin managed to convince her that neither of them were famous. "The owner just owed me a favour," he said.

Hunter remembered a fight they'd had near here fairly recently. He remembered the man they'd saved from the monster. The man had been so grateful, offering the Rangers anything they wanted in thanks for saving his life.

"You didn't," said Hunter when the waitress left again.

"I wanted to eat somewhere nice and everywhere was booked up, so I turned up as the Yellow Ranger and. um. asked for a space to be made for a friend. Please, don't tell Sensei."

"You realise how stupid and dangerous that was?"

"Yes." Dustin did actually look embarrassed.

"You realise that the owner could easily figure something out."

"Yes."

"Then why did you do it?"

"I wanted to do something nice to make up for telling you we should stop hanging out."

That was incredibly sweet, incredibly stupid and completely Dustin.

"Just don't do it again."

Clearly the restaurant owner was more grateful than could be expressed by an empty table. As they neared deserts, they were informed that the entire meal was on the house. Despite protestations, they were told that the owner would not accept any payment from them. The owner himself arrived to tell them that he owed the Rangers his life and that a free dinner was the least he could do. It was fairly obvious he suspected who they were, and the two decided that arguments were futile. As they left, they gave a generous tip for their waitress out of guilt for not having to pay.

"Well, I've got to say that food tastes better when it's free," said Dustin as they walked home.

"Don't even think about it. We are not going to do this again."

"I know, I know. I just don't see why we shouldn't be allowed this sort of thing occasionally. "

"Because if we did, we'd have to face the wrath of the unhappy guinea pig."

"Hey!" a voice called, "I've got a score to settle with you."

They turned round to see the speaker, a muscled guy with a gang of friends behind him. Hunter stared at him in confusion, but Dustin sighed, "Not this again." 


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

"You and me have got a score to settle," said Martin, walking towards Dustin and Hunter.

"In case you've forgotten," said Dustin, "I kicked your ass last time. What makes you think you'll win this time?"

"No one makes me look bad," said Martin, "Especially not some stupid fag." And he brought out a flick knife.

"You might want to put that away before you get hurt?" said Hunter.

"I'm not the one who's going to get hurt, queer."

"Oh please," interrupted a new voice, "You say that like half the magazines in your porn stash weren't full of naked guys."

"What?" asked as couple of Martin's thugs.

"That is a total lie!" said Martin.

The owner of the new voice approached them and Dustin recognised her as the waitress from the restaurant. Now that she stood beside Martin, the resemblance was obvious.

"Just 'cause you're too scared of what Dad will say to come clean about it, doesn't mean you should take it out on others."

"I'm not scared!" protested Martin, "And I'm not gay."

"Have you been messing around?" asked one of the thugs, bearing down on Martin, "Pretending to be normal when you're just another damn queer?"

"No. She's lying."

The rest of the group didn't seem any more convinced than the first and none of them looked particularly intimidated by the knife. Hunter and Dustin appeared to have been forgotten. The waitress came up to them and said quietly, "I think we'd better get out of here."

The two guys followed her until they were well out of earshot of the argument between Martin and his cronies.

"Is he really bi?" Dustin asked.

"How the heck should I know? Like I'd want to go looking in his room for anything." She grinned at them, "But I don't think he'll be giving you any trouble for a while."

"Why did you help us?" asked Hunter.

"You mean besides the fact my brother's a loser? You left a big enough tip that the head waitress said I clearly must have impressed you, so it looks like I might not be losing my job after all. Plus, you look sweet together. See you around."

She gave a little wave and headed off, presumably going home.

"Sweet?" asked Hunter, sounding as though the word was the most horrific insult imaginable.

"It could have been worse," said Dustin.

"But sweet? I'm a motorcross racer and a ninja. I'm not supposed to be sweet." The dark and brooding and very definitely masculine Hunter looked as affronted as Martin had at the implication of being bi.

Dustin laughed. "I dunno. I kinda think you're sweet sometimes."

"You. You do?"

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Nothing to worry about," said Hunter as Dustin looked as though he was having difficulty remembering he was supposed to breathe. "I mean, Tori practically said she was OK with it already."

They were standing outside Ninjops. It had been two days since their date. They'd spent most of the time at each other's homes, hanging out or actually discussing where they stood. Dustin had actually managed to have a conversation with Hunter that involved words like 'feelings'.

"Come on," said Hunter, "standing here isn't going to make it easier."

"Is running away an option?" Dustin wasn't scared of what his friends would say. Not really. His mind kept conjuring images of what might happen and how they might react. He knew all the things he imagined were so unlikely that he shouldn't worry, but there was still that fear that good friendships would be ruined by this confession.

"No, it's not." Hunter took Dustin's hand and led him across the pond and through the waterfall. They walked together into the main room where the others were gathered.

"About time," said Shane.

"We were wondering how long we'd have to wait," added Cam. The screen of his computer showed a view of the pond. They must have been watching them try to build up the courage for this encounter.

"Congratulations," said Tori, coming across to hug each of them in turn.

"You all knew?" asked Dustin.

"Well, I may have had to drop a few hints," said Blake.

"Interfering busybody," said Hunter as he crossed the room to hug his brother.

"You're alright with this Sensei?" asked Dustin.

"So long as you do not let your feelings interfere with your Rangers duties," replied the guinea pig, "your hearts are you own and you may follow them according to your own choices."

Hunter walked back to Dustin's side and took his hand. "I guess it's official."

They kissed, the sound of cheers of wolf-whistles from the rest of the team.

**The End **


	9. Announcement

A new science fiction thriller is coming out this month.

Child of the Hive


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